(JNS) A proposal to open U.S. Food and Drug Administration branches in Israel and the United Arab Emirates is headed to Congress for preliminary approval.

The goal is to strengthen regional ties, reduce America’s dependence on Chinese pharmaceutical supplies and boost Israeli medical exports.

The project, which is awaiting Israeli approval as well, comes at a time of good relations between Israel and Arab countries in the context of the 2020 Abraham Accords as well as pharmaceutical shortages in the U.S.

The proposal, dubbed “America’s Medical Friendshoring Solution,” is the brainchild of the Alabama-based U.S. Israel Education Association (USIEA), a faith-based nonprofit.

Senior members of Congress from both parties and top Israeli and Emirati government officials were briefed on the plan, which has been on the drawing board for a year. It is still under review in Jerusalem, officials said, where the Ministry of Health has been circumspect about green-lighting the move.